Wilbur Bass, known as Blaq Poet, was born on May 31, 1969, in Queensbridge, New York City. He began his music career as a rapper and first gained attention with the track "Beat You Down" from the Bridge Wars in 1987. In 1991, he formed the duo PHD (Poet & Hot Day) with DJ Hot Day, releasing their debut album Without Warning. After parting ways with Hot Day in 1996, Blaq Poet joined Screwball, a group that released two albums and a compilation. He went solo in 2006 with the street album Rewind: Deja Screw, which featured production from DJ Premier. In November 2020, he collaborated with Serious Truth on the LP Cultural Revolution, which received critical acclaim and significant airplay across various radio stations in the UK, Germany, Belgium, and the USA.